Lockdown 2.0 FIFA 21 Grassroots Football Tournament: The Grand Final Report
Welcome aboard the home of The Hype Train Hype Train Football Club. A second national lockdown in the UK has paused grassroots football, with sixteen football clubs within England coming together to form and compete in the first Grassroots Football Lockdown FIFA Tournament. Read the official report from the final night of action as the Grand Final took place on Sunday 22nd November 2020 between Barton Rovers and Piccadilly FC. All aboard.
What is the Grassroots Lockdown Tournament all about?:
Spearheaded by Stoke Poges Saints' Sunday side, and backed by several excellent sponsors and partners, a group of 16 teams have actually been able to organise a single knock-out tournament on Sony's PS4, with the Round of 16 set to take place on Thursday 19th November 2020, with the final currently scheduled for Sunday 22nd November 2020.
Best yet, the entire tournament is geared up towards charity, with the winning team having the honour of picking the eventual charity. Each of the 16 teams has already paid a £5 entry fee, and we here at Hype Train HQ have already stated that if our club representative prevails we will be donating another £50 towards the charity pot. If you would like to find out how to contribute to charity, please contact Stoke Poges on Twitter, or by emailing our team - contact@thehypetrain.co.uk
The grand final winner will also be presented with a bespoke trophy from the team at Awards FC, who are the title sponsor for this charity tournament, with the team at Awards specialists in delivering bespoke football awards, such as medals and Man of the Match and Player of the Month trophies, all designed to your club's likeness.
Event Details to Bookmark:
Last 16: Thursday 19th November 2020 (8-9pm)
Quarter-Finals: Friday 20th November 2020 (8pm)
Semi-Finals: Saturday 21st November 2020 (8pm)
Grand Final: Sunday 22nd November 2020 (8pm)
Watch as Piccadilly nominate their chosen charities:
Lockdown 2.0 FIFA 21 Grassroots Football Tournament: The Grand Final Report (22nd November 2020):
After four days of FIFA 21 competitive action, 16 teams and 15 matches, all in the name of charity, two clubs played out a thriller of a final as we crowned the very first champions of the tournament!
The top-end of the tournament bracket had been wide open and unpredictable for the entire duration of the tournament, with Barton Rovers ultimately steam-rolling their opposition. Barton representative, 'Big Neil', brushed aside JK Silvertown 9-1 in the opening round, before taking apart Stoke Poges Saints' Sunday 6-2 in their quarter-final. Barton's semi-final was a high-scoring affair as they ousted Slough United 5-2 in a lunch-time kick-off on Saturday.
The lower-half of the tournament bracket saw Piccadilly FC overcome Windsor Corinthians 5-2 in the first round, and then replicated that same 5-2 result against our own football team Hype Train FC in the quarter-finals, before downing Colchester Crusaders 4-1 in their semi-final to book a place in the final against Barton
With the Grand Final kicking off at 5pm (GMT), the opening stages of the game were evenly balanced between Piccadilly's Benjy Lovell and Barton, with both teams fittingly playing as current World Cup holders, France.
The opening stages of the game were finely balanced until the 20th minute when Barton could the lead with their 21st goal of the competition. Pressure built from Piccadilly, with a well-worked equaliser finding the net on the stroke of the 40th minute.
The infamous kick-off goal put Barton back ahead with the side from the top-bracket taking a 2-1 lead at half-time, though Lovell has been here before - coming from a losing or drawing position to come on strong in the second-half. The script was set and for the fourth time, lightning struck as a brace of quick-fire goals to open the second-half turned the game's tables on its head.
Looking to consolidate Piccadilly's lead, a further two goals came from twisting and turning in the box, with the fifth goal going in off the post to give Piccadilly breathing room. Room for relaxation though wasn't on the cards as Barton dominated the final twenty minutes of the match and scored a pair of well worked goals to set up a tense last attack of the game.
Barton robbed Piccadilly of the ball and drove forward in one last-gasp attempt to get level, though Piccadilly were able to clear their lines to draw the full-time whistle, crowning them the first ever Lockdown FIFA 21 Grassroots Football champions!
Congratulations to both teams on a fantastic game, and to Lovell and Piccadilly on their win in the final.
Lockdown 2.0 FIFA 21 Grassroots Football Tournament: The Chosen Charities
With Piccadilly's win, they have selected two charities to donate to as winners. First, £50 will be donated to Prostate Cancer UK, whilst a further £100 has been donated to the Kiyan Prince Foundation. Piccadilly and Lovell have also decided to donate the other £50 to Barton Rovers' chosen charity, No5 Young People.
From all the organisers of the tournament and ourselves, well done to all the clubs that participated in a flawlessly executed tournament that has done a lot to raise money and awareness for three charitable institutions. The sponsors at Awards FC and VoW Nutrition also deserve a massive round of applause for getting behind grassroots, especially during a pandemic! It's been a pleasure to track the tournament on our website and we can't wait until we're able to do this again in the near future!
Want to know more about The Hype Train?
The Hype Train is an entertainment website founded in 2015, specialising in Fantasy sports reporting, starting with Fantasy Premier League (FPL), before expanding to MLS Fantasy coverage in 2018.
We pride ourselves in providing beautiful graphics, statistics, in-depth analytical reporting and free weekly insight for hopeful players attempting to climb rankings tables. We are also occasional media reviewers, with a keen interest to review games, live sport, and professional wrestling.
In 2019, Hype Train Football Club was formed, becoming the first Fantasy Football website to take to the field. HTFC is a socially active team across social and web channels, providing regular match highlights, match reports, comprehensive player statistics and unique player profiles.
The Hype Train were nominated and shortlisted for the 'Best Football Blog' in 2016 by the Football Bloggers Association at their annual Football Blogging Awards (The FBA's), and were again shortlisted as a finalist in 2019 in the 'Best Fantasy Football Blog' category.
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All aboard.
